The attacks occurred in April and June, the Franklin, Tennessee-based company said this week. The hacker group originated from China and bypassed the company’s security system, making off with non-medical information from people who visited doctors’ offices associated with the company. No hospital inpatients were affected.

“Importantly, no patient medical or financial information was transferred as a result of this intrusion,” said Tomi Galin, a spokeswoman for Community Health.

The company has not yet released a list of the clinics involved in the breach. But Venice Regional’s marketing director Bob Hite confirmed Tuesday that the cyberattack included “limited personal identification data belonging to some patients who were seen at physician practices and clinics affiliated with Venice Regional Bayfront Health over the past five years.”

The company is notifying patients by letter, Hite said, and will be offering identity theft protection services to them.

Community Health said it hired electronic forensics specialist Mandiant to investigate the incident and improve security, and Hite said applications have been deployed to protect the system against future attacks. The hospital operator also is working with the FBI.

“We take very seriously the security and confidentiality of private patient information, and we sincerely regret any concern or inconvenience to patients,” Hite said.

Herald-Tribune Staff Writer Barbara Peters Smith contributed to this report, which includes material from the wire.